Nicholls inks transfer deal with Nunez Community College

Nicholls State University’s petroleum services program could see more students under a deal the school approved with Nunez Community College in Chalmette.

Matthew AlbrightStaff Writer

Nicholls State University’s petroleum services program could see more students under a deal the school approved with Nunez Community College in Chalmette.The agreement, signed Tuesday, makes it easier for students to transfer courses from Nunez’s two-year industrial technology program to Nicholls’ four-year program. Nunez’s program focuses on process technology and the downstream side of the oil sector — refineries and chemical plants — while Nicholls’ more rigorous four-year program prepares students for supervisory positions and emphasizes the upstream side of the business — exploration and drilling.The program is great news for Nunez students, who will get the opportunity to use the work they did there to get a four-year degree to open more career doors.“With more interest in offshore and many management-level workers retiring in this field, a bachelor’s degree from Nicholls will really give our students a shot to move into more advanced careers,” said Keith Tolleson, process technology program manager at Nunez.But the program’s also good for Nicholls because it increases the number of prepared students seeking a degree, school officials said.“We’re a natural fit for students from Nunez who are looking to get that four-year degree,” said Michael Gautreaux, Nicholls petroleum services instructor and program coordinator. “What we offer complements what they offer.”Gautreaux said several students have transferred to Nicholls from Nunez over the past few years and have done well, going on to get jobs as supervisors. The agreement is one way to make that transition smoother and produce more graduates qualified for the oil industry.Many big oil companies and the contractors who service them are pouring money and manpower into getting enough trained workers for “The Big Crew Change,” a wave of impending retirements expected to happen over the next few years.That’s caused Nicholls’ petroleum services school to explode in size — Gautreaux said the program grew from 194 students last year to 264 students this year, and 65 students have already enrolled for the spring semester.School officials said that’s good news, but it comes with a serious problem — money from the state continues to shrink, so Nicholls can’t afford new teachers to pick up the ballooning course load. “On the one hand, we’re dealing with survival mode as a university at large,” Gautreaux said. “But, on the other hand, we’ve got our program getting bigger and bigger.”For now, Gautreaux said the school is keeping up with demand by having instructors take on more class loads and filling classrooms to capacity. But he said that’s an untenable situation in the long term — students are already facing waiting lists and having problems scheduling the classes they need.“We’re all doing more and hoping that things get better,” Gautreaux said. “But something needs to change soon.”

Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@dailycomet.com.